What goes around comes around: that’s our theme for National Recycling Week 2023!
National Recycling Week was started by Planet Ark in 1996 and runs on the second week of November - 13th until the 19th this year.
The campaign aims to educate Australians on the reduce, reuse and recycle hierarchy to decrease the pressure on Earth’s limited resources.
Recycling only works if it is done right.
Our focus this year is learning how to recycle better. A key component of this being to change our recycling habits; learning what can be recycled and how to do it correctly. Something as simple as putting the right thing in the right bin gives each item the best chance of being recycled and saves the use of raw materials.
Recycling is one of the best ways to fight climate change and reduce your carbon footprint. You can contribute by reducing the amount of waste you send to landfill: think about what could be used again and take the time to find special recycling facilities for tricky items to avoid throwing away valuable resources.
We’ve got some high - but very achievable - targets to hit as a nation dedicated towards a more sustainable future, including halving the amount of organic waste sent to landfill and decreasing the total waste generated by 10% per Australian by the year 2030.
Unfortunately, despite our efforts so far, both of these statistics climbed by 3% since 2016
[1].
It goes to show that while we may have the best of intentions, our collective knowledge on how to recycle is limited.
There are some simple key steps you can make to help reduce your environmental impact and promote a more sustainable future. Planet Ark recommends taking these actions:
Give second hand items a new life, swap clothes with friends and if you’re purchasing new, look for recycled materials. Switch to recycled paper products including tissues and toilet paper!
Look for the Australasian Recycling Label on your products to ensure you’re putting the right bits into the right bins.
Learn how easy it is to start up your own compost system at home!
Put items in the bin loose to ensure they can be sorted correctly.
Check out Planet Ark’s Recycling Near You tool to discover how you can properly recycle miscellaneous items such as paint or computers.
We’ve made a lot of headway since we began recycling 40 years ago. Keeping recyclable products in rotation reduces the need to extract virgin materials for new products. A circular economy is created, which promotes local business and employment opportunities.
With each successfully recycled item, excess water and energy usage is avoided that would have been used in new material production, less forests are destroyed, fewer animals are injured or displaced, and travel emissions are reduced.
National Recycling Week is a wonderful opportunity to spark up a conversation on sustainability. Each new initiative, whether it be for an entire school or a single household, drives us further towards our goal of a greener future.
There are plenty of fun ways to get your family, school or workplace involved: a simple game or office challenge could see the formation of new and positive lifelong habits that help us become a more sustainable society!
Click the links for more information on how to get involved at
home
,
work
,
school
and in the
community
.
It’s time to rethink our waste to reduce our environmental impact: Get your school, workplace or family involved and help to educate and promote trust in recycling.
Together we can help Australian’s appreciate that each products’ end is just as important as its beginning.
References
[1]
Planet Ark, 2023. How Much Waste Does Australia Generate and Where Does It Go?
https://planetark.org/newsroom/news/how-much-waste-does-australia-generate-and-where-does-it-go
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